Yes, you're right. My first thought was "They're both good actors and I'm sure the movie will be fine with either of them", but thinking in terms of box-ofice, you have a point. Downey is huge at the moment and that can make a difference.

Iron Man $318MTropic Thunder $110MIron Man II $312MDue Date $100MThe Avengers $623Mand yeah, The Soloist but even $31M is almost twice "The Master" grosses, so he definitely wouldn't have hurt. Plus, he's big overseas. That said, It'll be super interesting to see what Joaquin does a second time around as I can only assume it will be 180 degrees different.

Listen to Duplass on this."The Master is going to lose money, and [Megan Ellison] doesn't give a shit. She's going to make more movies like that. And that sort of punk-rock spirit with the power that she has is exactly what we need in cinema right now."

Logged

Christopher Nolan's directive was clear to everyone in the cast and crew: Use CGI only as a last resort.

I was reading "Inherent Vice" during the period when I watched "The Master" seven times, and the lead character of "Inherent Vice" totally reminded me of Freddie Quell.

I was unhappy with the choice of RDJ for "Inherent Vice". He's too old and too successful (with the Iron Man/Sherlock Holmes franchises) to play Larry "Doc" Sportello.

I had hoped Joaquin would play Sportello, but never even dreamed it could happen. The reunion of PTA and Joaquin Phoenix makes me so happy!

Here's a paragraph from Pynchon's book that made me think of Freddie Quell - the guy who sleeps through the date with the department store model, and the guy who sleeps in a movie theater:

Doc's history with Bigfoot had escalated with the Lunchwater case, one more of the squalid matrimonials that were occupying Doc's time back then. The husband, a tax accountant who thought he'd score some quality surveillance on the cheap, had hired Doc to keep an eye on his wife. After a couple days of stakeouts at the boyfriend's house Doc decided to go up on the roof and have a closer look through a skylight at the bedroom below, where the activities proved to be so routine - hanky maybe, not much panky - that he decided to light a joint to pass the time, taking one from his pocket, in the dark, more soporific than he had intended. Before long he had fallen asleep and half rolled half slid down the shallow pitch of the red-tile roof, coming to rest with his head in the gutter, where he then managed to sleep through the events which followed, including hubby's arrival, considerable screaming, and gunfire loud enough to get the neighbors to call the police. Bigfoot, who happened to be out in a prowl car nearby, showed up to find the husband and the b.f. slain and the wife attractively tousled and sobbing, and gazing at the .22 in her hand as if it was the first time she'd seen one. Doc, up on the roof, was still snoring away.

I have to confess I haven't finished the book yet -I'm reading it slowly and enjoying every single page. The number of characters is daunting. If I were PTA, I would just film the whole book as an HBO mini-series. The book is wonderful - so full of sex and humor that I believe PTA's adaptation will be his first blockbuster!

Doc's history with Bigfoot had escalated with the Lunchwater case, one more of the squalid matrimonials that were occupying Doc's time back then. The husband, a tax accountant who thought he'd score some quality surveillance on the cheap, had hired Doc to keep an eye on his wife. After a couple days of stakeouts at the boyfriend's house Doc decided to go up on the roof and have a closer look through a skylight at the bedroom below, where the activities proved to be so routine - hanky maybe, not much panky - that he decided to light a joint to pass the time, taking one from his pocket, in the dark, more soporific than he had intended. Before long he had fallen asleep and half rolled half slid down the shallow pitch of the red-tile roof, coming to rest with his head in the gutter, where he then managed to sleep through the events which followed, including hubby's arrival, considerable screaming, and gunfire loud enough to get the neighbors to call the police. Bigfoot, who happened to be out in a prowl car nearby, showed up to find the husband and the b.f. slain and the wife attractively tousled and sobbing, and gazing at the .22 in her hand as if it was the first time she'd seen one. Doc, up on the roof, was still snoring away.

This was the point early on in the book where I knew I would enjoy the heck out of reading it

Listen to Duplass on this."The Master is going to lose money, and [Megan Ellison] doesn't give a shit. She's going to make more movies like that. And that sort of punk-rock spirit with the power that she has is exactly what we need in cinema right now."

Considering the "dream casting" of Phoenix, and the large, expansive cast of characters in the book, do you want to see any PTA alum in particular roles? Of course, the fresh talent is still always something awesome to behold in a PTA film. And some of the parts would be fleeting for known actors if translated to cinema. Still, any opinions?

Personally, I could see Paul Dano easily returning as one of Doc's stoner friends.

Considering the "dream casting" of Phoenix, and the large, expansive cast of characters in the book, do you want to see any PTA alum in particular roles? Of course, the fresh talent is still always something awesome to behold in a PTA film. And some of the parts would be fleeting for known actors if translated to cinema. Still, any opinions?

Personally, I could see Paul Dano easily returning as one of Doc's stoner friends.

LUIS GUZMAN as SAUNCHO. I would also love to see John C. Reilly in AT LEAST a cameo.